Three cloaked figures trotted lightly down the cobble stone streets of Manehattan, breaking the pure silence of the early morning. Dark clouds and fog loomed over the quaint village, enough so that even the brilliant beams of the full moon could hardly pierce its thick web. Two of the beings followed behind the lead of the third, the back of their coal-black robes bearing the crest of the Princess of the Night.
"Shall we clear the sky for you, Princess?" one asked, "Just give the word."
Princess Luna, who had led her accompanying guards through the ordeal stopped in her tracks. "Yes, please. That would be best as it is also time for me to perform my duty."
The twin Bat-ponies accompanying her glanced briefly at one another before taking flight. Even a task as simple as this was done with a sense of urgency and as efficiently as possible. It was a rather beauteous display. The pair dashing to and fro creating a swirling vortex of cloud with Luna at the center, eyes closed as she raised and bowed her head in one smooth motion as she retired the Moon for the day to begin.
As the sun rose the landscape transformed. Where only a minute ago they saw only ten feet in front of them now the view stretched out for miles when not obstructed by some building. Straw and wood houses with foundations made from stone came to light all about them. Luna assumed them to be in the center of town given the circular shape of the area with streets darting out in all direction, not to mention the magnificently massive well at it's middle.
Manehattan slowly began crawling to life as ponies started to get ready for the day to come. Luna though had preparations of her own to begin as well. She turned to address the sibling guards. "Dusk, Lavean, would you be so kind as to procure all of the ingredients listed on this parchment? We must not waste any time..."
Lavean took the scroll into his mouth, grunting in agreement as he and his brother began to carry out their assignment. Luna raised her hoof, causing them both to pause mid-trot. "And boys, please try not to let that recipe out of your sight. It is something I have worked very hard on." The guards nodded and promptly went on their way.
Luna turned, taking note of a rather large sign posted in front of one of the larger houses. The sign was constructed out of an odd mish-mash of old and new wood, a splatter of moss and vines across it. Some boards looked as if they would snap in two at any moment while the others had a sheen to them she could nearly see her own reflection in. The lettering on it read: 'Home of your glorious leader - Mayor Drocsid'.
"How humble." Her eyes focused off the sign and on the home behind which was to no big surprise upheld in a similar manner. "After today I need to see to it that they have the necessary funds to restore this place properly." she thought aloud "An official's home should not be held in such a state."
"Hello there!!!"
Luna jumped with fright as a pony suddenly popped in next to her, scaring the nightly flow right out of her mane.
"Oh I agree." The new Pony shook his head. "Tsk, tsk, any respected town official should have his residence in a state of better upkeep than this."
He looked to Luna, her heart was beating out of her chest with her eyes crossed and legs shaking.
"Oh dear! Please forgive my absolutely deplorable behavior Miss Luna. My sincerest apologies. I am the head of this enchanting little corner of Equestria." He extended his hoof to her. "Mayor Drocsid at your service."
Luna quickly recomposed her figure with one deep breath, trying to act as if nothing had happened. She shook his hoof. "Y-you are forgiven D-Drocsid..." Just saying his name left a bad taste in her mouth, like eating tofu injected with slug slime and nose hairs. She looked him over, not having had the chance to really do so beforehand with nearly being frightened to death and all .
He was a Unicorn of average height with a Dark-Grey mane and Goldish-Grey coat. But what stuck out most to her was the peculiar coloring of his eyes.
Nevertheless she continued. "I shall get straight to the point Mr. Mayor. I have come today to offer your 'Manehattanites' a first-hoof taste of my most dazzling creation. Presenting..." She unfurled a poster sized parchment from her saddlebag. "Chocolaaate Miiillk!!"
Her cute lil' poster depicted the full moon as a large pitcher of pure white milk pouring down from the night sky as Luna herself used magic to transform the drink mid-air into her new drink and simultaneously disperse it into bottles. Happy ponies everywhere enjoyed it, gulping down two or three bottles all at once, dancing and partying under the stars.
Drocsid leaned in close to the paper, a dour expression on his face. "Did you draw this yourself?"
Luna's beaming smile, once filled with joy and pride began to deflate. "Why y-yes I did, is there anything wrong with it?" she asked, anxiety in her voice.
Droc said nothing. He got closer and closer, eyes squinting all the more the nearer he got to it until his muzzle touched the very surface of the drawing.
Finally he spoke. "Nope, nothing at all."
Luna sighed with relief as Droc used his magic to roll the poster back up and place it vertically in her bag so it lovingly poked up out of the corner when the top was closed. "I do love the creativity my Princess. So will you be needing my assistance with your little endeavor?"
Just then Lavean and Dusk had returned with their bounty of goods in toll. "Not at the moment, thank you." Luna replied. "Just making the intentions of my visit clear to the local authority. But thank you for the offer."
The Mayor took a step back almost as if he were a bit off put by her answer. "Well, that really is too bad. But...I wish you the best of luck and will be at your disposal whenever you should have need of my services." At that he began to energize magic in his horn in preparation for a spell. "I'll stop by and try some later but ta ta for now." A flash of light later and Drocsid had teleported away and where he had gone to was anypony's guess.
"I probably ought to be concerned about that, shouldn't I?" Luna thought. But her fears where quickly cast aside in favor of finally kicking things off.
She turned to Lavean and Dusk. "Ready my assistants?"
After she slapped her personal poster over the Mayor's semi-dilapidated sign she began the seemingly effortless act of levitating all of the bat-pony gathered products at once. All around her things were in a different state of production. The ingredients were being mixed, stirred and finally corked inside bottles with Luna's likeness on them and then neatly stacked all right outside the home of the town's Mayor.
The timing was perfect. Several of the ponies had already begun to pour out into the town center. Just as she had finished with all her preparations, complete with her own wooden stand which more than a little bit resembled one you might see a young Filly selling lemonade out of.
The giddy lil' Princess simply could not prevent herself from bouncing up and down just as one would in anticipation of opening many sizeable Hearthswarming gifts.
Her royal Canterlot voice kicked in.
"ATTENTION, CITIZENS OF PONYV- I M-MEAN MANEHATTAN! HEAR ME NOW!" That got everypony's attention. Even the ones clear across town. "KNOW THAT THINE EYES DO NOT DECEIVE THEE. I AM INDEED YOUR BELOVED PRINCESS AND HAVE COME TO OFFER YOU ALL A FIRST-HOOF CHANCE TO EXPERIENCE THE WONDERS OF...'' At this she put all the bottles into an orbit around her. "CHOCOLATE MILK!"
"I'll try one, Princess." Came a familiar voice from the void. An instant later Mayor Drocsid appeared. "As I believe it is technically now later. Even if just by a minute or two."
"Most excellent," Luna said, knowing full well all the good publicity that would come from having the town's Mayor drink some. "All I would ask for in return for a free sample is your complete and honest review." And by golly Luna was confident it would be a glowing one.
Droc smiled. "But of course. I would never lie to you!"
"Then here you are good sir." Luna presented him with the first bottle ever to be consumed by the masses of common ponies. "Enjoy." Her calm demeanour did little to truly express the huge mass of bubbly joy she felt growing within her, threatening to burst out.
Drocsid uncorked his bottle. He took one sip and the bottle was empty.
"Wha- B-But how in Equestria??" Luna was flabbergasted, antics like that were usually only seen with Chancellor Puddinghead.
In a rather unexpected moment Droc leapt up over the table and embraced Luna. "Simply incredible!! The very second that delightful, wonderful, enchanting, super duper beverage touched my lips something came over me. I had to finish off the whole thing in one sip. I want more. No..." he corrected. "I must have more!"
Nopony could dislike the drink...indeed.
The joy was now too great for Luna to even care that a pony she had just met a few minutes ago was now all up in her personal Princess-space bubble. "I am delighted to hear that Mayor! Of course you can have more, for the reasonable price of one bit per bottle. All the proceeds with bene-"
"One bit?!" yelled Droc, looking like his world was ending. "One bit for one bottle? I'll be broke within the hour and I'm the Mayor!" He then took on a whispered tone almost mumbling to himself. "Maybe if I...no, no, even the entire treasury couldn't buy enough."
"Pardon?" Luna asked, believing she must have misheard. No pony could possibly love her chocolate milk enough to actually go and spend an entire town's treasury for it, right?
She cleared her throat. "So the first will be free and then it'll be one bit per bottle thereafter. All the proceeds will go to a good cause, helping any and all of my ponies in need."
"Perfect," Droc shouted. "I'll give you all my bits, drink all the milk then I'll be a broke miserable pony in need and you'd have to give all the bits back to me a-and it's the perfect cycle!" Despite all the craziness he was spouting he had an air of delight about him.
"Mayor! You can't be serious!" The happy-joy in her now turned more into slight discomfort. "Calm yourself. Surely this drink isn't worth all that right?" She held up a bottle.
Like a shark breaching the water Droc leapt into the air and seized the milk. All of it was gone before he even hit the ground. Rapidly Droc teleported the remaining bottles out of sight and in their place he left an equivalent pile of bits.
"Now if you'll excuse me, I hereby resign as the Mayor and will be taking the remainder of your stock, Miss Luna." He poofed in a giant hat that said 'New Mayor' and placed it on her head.
"This all has to be some kind of a dream." Luna closed her eyes, gently rubbing at her temples. "I mean...I know it's not given who I am but still. You can't be serious."
"Oh I am most serious." said Droc. "Thank you for all the joy you've brought me, I must now go and concentrate. I need to get this next step just right."
"Mayor-"
"Ex-Mayor, thank you." he corrected. "I wouldn't be caught dead 'Mayor-ing' in this place again."
"Well of course you wouldn't." Luna deadpanned. "...as you'd be dead. Therefore you'd be unfit not to mention unable to carry out the necessary duties of your office."
Droc pondered her statement. "Indeed...but yeah, I got no snarky comeback to that, so toodles!"
And with that he teleported away, his crimson eyes being the last thing she seen.
"Um, Princess Luna. We've got a problem." Dusk said, plucking one bit from the money-pile the now ex-mayor had left them. He peeled back the 'coin's gilded wrapper.
Fury overtook Luna's eyes. Quite literally as her eyes where now white with rage. Swirls of storm clouds began to manifest as lightning danced across the sky. "HE DARES PAY THE PRINCESS OF THE NIGHT. HIS BELOVED PRINCESS!!! WITH WRAPPED-CHOCOLATE CANDIES!!"
And then it began to pour down rain. Though it came from the clouds above, it's source was not from Luna but elsewhere.
Luna calmed down, finding herself in a most odd situation. She gently let out her tongue to catch a single drop as it fell to earth.
"Is this...c-chocolate milk rain?"